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Nov 9, 2015

So You Have A Concealed Carry Permit. What About Training?

Citizens of the United States are the
only people of a nation with a national constitution written for the
People and established rights, liberties and rules for government by
the People. Despite in recent decades of politicians ignoring that
Constitution and its articles and amendments because of apathy and
ignorance towards that Constitution – one amendment to that
constitution stands out among other constitutions of other nations:
the Second Amendment. It is a simple paragraph that simply states
that each citizen is expected to be militia to defend the nation and
its constitution against foreign and domestic enemies, and if
necessary, to overthrow a government turned to tyranny and who does
not abide by the articles and amendments of the Constitution of the
United States. The Second Amendment guarantees that each lawful
citizen has the right to keep and bear arms.
NOTE: One exception among foreign nations is Switzerland, who has a small standing army for defense purposes and relies upon its citizen militia to be on call in case of national emergency. Every able-bodied citizen undergoes basic training and when completed goes home with necessary combat gear to include a military weapon and expected to practice marksmanship periodically.

With every right and liberty,
especially the Second Amendment, there is responsibility to enact
that right effectively, legally, and safely. Liberties and rights
demand responsibility; just as the duty and task of each citizen to
vote – and do so responsibly.

Today, most states recognize the Second
Amendment to the US Constitution, but in order to carry a concealed
firearm/weapon, one must apply for a permit that requires a
background check, fingerprinting, and, in most cases, a credited
handling and safety course for handguns.

Whether required or not, and even if a
concealed permit carrier is a military veteran, it would be best to
attend a training program or retraining program to refresh and
bone-up on skills required for self defense. There are quality
schools across the nation, but the one that stands out to meet the
above criteria, teaching marksmanship, correct handling, and
discipline required for self-defense and combat-type shooting
required.

The one school that stands out is the
GunSite Academy
that goes beyond simple marksmanship and firearm discipline that
includes principles of combat and mental training that has been
established by its founder, Jeff
Cooper, as Combat
Triad. The school offers several levels of instruction for
handgun, carbine, shotgun, bolt-action, and semi-auto precision
rifles.

Each instructor is someone who served
in Law Enforcement, the military, or for some, both. Each instructor
has been drilled with the doctrine and tradition of Gunsite Academy.

John
Dean “Jeff” Cooper (1920-2006, was a graduate of Stanford
University with a bachelor's degree in political science when he
received a commission in the USMC (United States Marine Corps) in
1941. At the end of the second world war he was promoted to major and
resigned his commission in 1949 only to return to active duty during
the Korean War where he was involved in 'irregular' insurgency
warfare, being promoted to lieutenant colonel. After the Korean War,
the Marine Corps declined his application to remain on active duty.
From the 1950s through early 1970s, he taught history at high school
and community college level.

In 1976, Cooper founded the American
Pistol Institute (API) in Paulden, Arizona, which later became
Gunsite
Academy. Cooper started out teaching shotgun and rifle
classes to law enforcement and military personnel, as well as
civilians with on-site training for individuals and groups that came
from around the globe. He sold the establishment in 1992, but
continued to live on the Paulden ranch. His favorite handgun was,
naturally, the Colt 1911 chambered for .45 ACP cartridge.

Jeff Cooper was the inventor of the
'Modern
Technique of the Pistol' that emphasizes two-handed shooting
called the Weaver
Stance and the one-handed shooting technique that utilizes
five elements: (1) large caliber pistol, preferably semi-auto; (2)
Weaver Stance; (3) Draw Stroke; (4) Flash-Sight picture; and
(5) compressed surprise trigger break.

Colonel Cooper carried his M1911 in the
“Cocked and Locked” position he referred to as Condition 1, a
standard combat carry method for that particular sidearm. M1911 is a
single-action only sidearm. All other handguns fall under the
Condition 2 system that the M1911 cannot be carried as such without a
firing-pin
safety catch.

Martial Arts is usually akin to the
Asian schooling of hand-to-hand combat, but since the term 'martial
art' comes from the Latin phrase meaning “arts of Mars” (god of
war); this includes the combined physical and mental instruction and
training concerning combat weapons in the modern inventory.

Jeff Cooper is the one who established
the 'combat mindset' called the Cooper
Color Codes. It is based on the concept that the primary tool
is combat mindset that has been established by Cooper's book:
Principles of Personal Defense.

It all has to do with one's state of
mind, pertaining to the degree of peril and degree which you are
willing to do something about it. Cooper never claims to have
invented the concept, but developed a system involving color coding
in order to instruct training of combat mental state. It is a means
for a trainee to condition their mind and “think” in a fight. As
the danger level increases, so does requirement to take certain
actions increase. Cooper's comment on the subject:

We cannot say that the
government’s ideas about colors are wrong, but that they are
different from what we have long taught here. The problem is this:
your combat mind-set is not dictated by the amount of danger to which
you are exposed at the time. Your combat mind-set is properly
dictated by the state of mind you think appropriate to the situation.
You may be in deadly danger at all times, regardless of what the
Defense Department tells you. The color code which influences you
does depend upon the willingness you have to jump a psychological
barrier against taking irrevocable action. That decision is less hard
to make since the jihadis have already made it.

Cooper
established for his instruction and Gunsite Academy, four basic rules
of firearm safety: (1) all guns are always loaded; (2) never let the
muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy; (3) keep your
finger off trigger until your sights are on target; (4) identify
target and what is behind it.

If
you cannot afford to travel to and attend the various levels of
instruction at the Gunsite Academy, you can use its rules to identify
a quality local place of instruction that matches or comes close to
standards that have made the Gunsite Academy world renown.

Cooper
is gone now, but his memory remains in the individual and group
training available at the academy. His home remains on the GunSite
property.

Some
of Cooper's students progressed to be certified as “Shooting
Masters”:

There
are youth courses for teenagers available, providing a 'summer camp'
atmosphere and a place for young folks to learn from the best about
handling, safety, responsibility, and mental state of self defense.One final and important note: expect to be required to undergo a judicial hearing after using a firearm in self-defense. Law enforcement officers are also required to undergo a hearing when they are forced to use their firearm as well. It would be a good thing to join the NRA and you will receive one of their magazines (your choice) as part of their annual fee. NRA has a listing of organizations that provide concealed-carry persons with judicial insurance. The organizations will provide you with a lawyer that specializes in cases where one must use a firearm in self defense and get you through the required judicial procedures of your locality. You do not have to live in the United States to receive an NRA membership, but the concealed-carry judicial protection insurance requires to be living in United States.

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We the People

“Who are the militia? Are they not ourselves? It is feared, then, that we shall turn our arms each man against his own bosom. Congress have no power to disarm the militia. Their swords, and every other terrible implement of the soldier, are the birthright of an American... [T]he unlimited power of the sword is not in the hands of either the federal or state governments, but, where I trust in God it will ever remain, in the hands of the people."[Tench Coxe, The Pennsylvania Gazette, 1788]

"He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious. ... The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting." [Sun Tzu]

"Liberty once lost, is lost forever."[John Adamsand Ronald Reagan]

"If you do not look upon life as a great journey filled with adventure, then life is really not worth the effort. ... If you want to see the miracle of life, be present when a child is born. When life is done, another journey begins ... because the soul is energy that cannot be destroyed, it just changes form, according to Albert Einstein." [Keith A. Lehman]

So have I become your enemy by telling you the truth? [Saint John, Letter to Galatians 4:16]

I ask sir, what is the militia? It is the whole body of the people. [George Mason]

The worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal. [Aristotle ]